Bennett woke up.

  It had been a week, and he had improved by leaps and bounds in his mana capacity, mana control, and his mental resilience under pressure.

  He got ready for the day, but something felt... off.

  He couldn’t say why.

  All he knew was that his instincts were screaming at him: Danger.

  There was no clear reason, and that uncertainty made him more paranoid and more cautious than usual.

  After breakfast, he headed to the mission center and picked up a Rank 1 Apprentice quest: collecting specific herbs.

  He packed his bag quickly and took off his weighted clothing, still unsettled by the ominous feeling that had been with him since morning.

  Before leaving, he stopped by a convenience store and picked up some rope and tools. Only after that did he feel truly prepared.

  At the gate, he approached one of the guards.

  “Hey, ma’am. Here’s my quest. Also... what's the danger level outside?

  Cause something just feels off.”

  The guard chuckled. “Nice joke, kid. But don’t worry. Danger’s at a minimum right now our instructors make sure of that. Still, we’ll keep an eye out, so relax.”

  “Thanks. Also here’s my ID. Rank’s Apprentice.”

  “Oh, Rank 1? Gotcha. Heads up, though a group of idiots from another academy left through the gate earlier. I'd suggest avoiding them. I'm sure you know why.”

  “Of course. We were already taught that the more people you're with, the higher the chance your life pulse gets detected and each extra person multiplies the risk.”

  “Good kid. At least you’ve got the basics down. Now go and make sure you're back in a few days.”

  "Yes, sir," Bennett saluted and headed off but that uneasy feeling still clung to him.

  Something felt incredibly wrong.

  He wanted to ignore his instincts. Pretend it was just nerves.

  But doing so could easily cost him his life. All he knew for sure was that today was dangerous. Very dangerous.

  With that in mind, he rushed toward the quest location.

  The target was a herb called Sun-Soaked Flowers, used in crafting mana regeneration pills.

  One upside to this quest was the flexible reward the more he brought back, the higher his payout.

  Taking advantage of that, he set up camp near a large field of the glowing flowers and rigged a number of noisy traps around the perimeter.

  He then began cautiously picking the herbs, taking extra care to inspect their age indicated by how bright they glowed.

  The brighter the flower, the older and more potent the herb.

  Using that as his guide, he ignored the dull ones and focused only on the brightest.

  Normally he would have gathered them all, but today...

  Today his instincts had him on edge. Tense.

  He only picked the best ones and left the rest behind.

  What's with this feeling?

  If it wasn't for my mental training, this level of danger screaming at me would've made me panic already.

  Bennett grimaced, his eyes scanning the surroundings again over and over despite the traps he’d already set.

  But still…

  I have to do this. Even if there’s danger especially if there’s danger how else am I supposed to get stronger?

  As Bennett carefully picked another herb, a scream tore through the air.

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  "AHHH! SOMEONE PLEASE SAV-"

  The voice cut off, clean and sudden. Dead.

  Bennett froze. That person was no more than 500 meters away, and now they were gone. That meant whatever killed them was already close and it likely knew where he was now.

  “Dammit! Who the hell was that idiot?” Bennett cursed, already moving.

  He rushed back to his makeshift camp and started tearing it down in record time. No time for neatness. Just get the hell out.

  Just as he strapped the last pouch onto his belt, the bushes near the forest edge rustled violently. Two figures stumbled into the clearing, wounded, exhausted, their mana depleted to almost nothing.

  “DAMMIT, ARE YOU TWO IDIOTS?!”

  Bennett shouted, furious. He turned to bolt he didn’t owe them anything but three Rhyhounds burst out from the brush, their size larger than any he’d seen before.

  And behind them…

  One even larger.

  Shit.

  No time to think. Bennett slammed his staff to the ground, unleashing a massive shockwave with four minutes worth of stored mana. The force blasted the three Rhyhounds back just enough to create space.

  “Any less, and I wouldn’t’ve moved them an inch…” he muttered, gritting his teeth.

  He glanced back and grew angrier. Idiot #1 and Idiot #2 were now cowering behind him, using him as a literal meat shield. He could even feel the mana shield they’d formed, not to fight, but to protect themselves.

  “You two STOP HIDING AND FIGHT!”

  But there was no time to scold. One Rhyhound lunged straight at him, while the other two flanked to his sides.

  Classic pincer.

  Bennett dashed forward, met the first beast head-on with a savage vibration strike, shattering its nose and eyes. It howled and thrashed in blind rage but that was the opening he needed. He slid underneath it and drove another shockwave into its underbelly, breaking through its core with a crushing pulse of mana.

  Before he could even breathe, the other two charged. He slammed the staff again another shockwave.

  Stay back.

  He panted, turning just in time to see something new emerge from the brush.

  It wasn’t like the others.

  Taller. Heavier. Smarter.

  And its presence hit him like a slab of cold iron.

  Siegehound.

  A Rank 4 Beast.

  Bennett’s eyes widened, his brain racing as he remembered the entry.

  “Siegehound: High intelligence. Fast regeneration. Reinforced core. Excellent speed. Rank 4 beast estimated to match a Rank 8 Apprentice.”

  He grimaced.

  “Fuck. I can’t beat that.”

  The beast didn’t move.

  It just stood there watching.

  Smug. Amused. Waiting.

  Not attacking. Not wasting energy. Letting the smaller beasts wear him down.

  It was planning.

  Calculating.

  And in its eyes, Bennett saw exactly what it saw him as:

  Easy prey.

  Bennett took deep breaths, ignoring the two idiots now that he could see them clearly. They were clearly wearing uniforms from another school, reminding him of the guards' warning. As for their appearance, the male had blond hair, arrogant red eyes, and a physique built for strength. His weapon, a sword, was broken. The female student had long violet hair, blue eyes, a cute face, and a petite body. Her weapon was a crossbow.

  Of all people I could run into, it's this group I was warned about. Damn it.

  Bennett knew his only chance of survival was either getting lucky and having an instructor pass by, or hauling ass to the gates.

  As he was planning, the two students grinned maliciously. They tossed a pill at him, and before he could react, it exploded. The pill, filled with life pulse energy, instantly made him the #1 target of the beasts.

  The two students escaped through the ruins, the beasts ignoring them entirely.

  Bennett waved his staff in a circle, his expression grim. He was alone, facing a Rank 4 beast. He knew he couldn’t escape, and even if he tried, the Siegehound would catch up to him.

  The two Rhyhounds attacked again, this time aiming to devour him with each strike. The pill that stuck to him had boosted his life pulse, making him a prime target. However, the beasts were sloppy, likely from their ravaged state.

  Bennett focused on dodging but kept his senses open to the Rank 4 beast its threat was too great to ignore.

  He dropped to the ground, rolling as the two Rhyhounds lunged and missed, crashing into each other. They didn’t care, and immediately tried to squash him with their paws.

  Seizing the opportunity, Bennett used Revolving Cinder, making his staff appear aflame. He struck both paws with whatever mana was left in the staff, shattering their paws and causing the shockwave to roughly damage their cores. Their regeneration slowed.

  Quickly, Bennett swapped to his next staff, minimizing the mana-depleted one, and repeated the action. This time, he used less mana and sent a shockwave to the back of the first Rhyhound. He then jumped over the swipe of the second Rhyhound.

  Afterward, he landed a normal strike to redirect the second Rhyhound’s bite, exposing its side and allowing Bennett to use another shockwave.

  The entire sequence took 24 seconds.

  Bennett panted, overexerted from his speed, mana, and quick reflexes. Both Rhyhounds were dead.

  All that was left was the Rank 4 Siegehound.

  Bennett turned to face it as it finally made its move, lunging at him. It appeared in front of him so suddenly that he barely had time to react. He managed to bring his staff up in time to block, but the force of the impact sent him flying back, crashing through one tree and then another these were thick trees, not small ones.

  Bennett gasped, pain surging through his ribs. Despite blocking the hit with all his staff’s mana, his ribs were shattered. He forced himself to switch to his last staff.

  Struggling to breathe from his broken ribs, Bennett was only alive due to sheer will and his body’s strengthening. If it weren’t for that, he would’ve died from that hit.

  The beast looked at him, seemingly surprised he had survived.

  Bennett subtly adjusted his position, ensuring there was nothing blocking his back.

  The Siegehound lunged again, swiping with its paw. This time, Bennett was ready. He used Revolving Cinder with his shockwave to barely block, using the force of the attack to propel him backward.

  He landed on his feet and used the momentum to keep running, though his strength was rapidly depleting. The guard post was an hour away, but if he could get close enough, he might be able to alert them. That was his only hope. As for the two students, he decided to forget about them for now.

  The beast, amused, began chasing Bennett, swiftly closing the gap. But like last time, Bennett used its attack to push his momentum forward, despite his shattered ribs. His vision was blurry, and the only thing on his mind was to run.

  His third staff had already run out of mana after two hits, so he stowed it away and, with no choice, took both a health and a mana pill.

  Cough, cough "Ugh, hopefully, someone shows up. If I survive this, I swear to God, I’ll kill those two fuckers..."

  Bennett was panting, blood trickling from the side of his lips.

  The beast caught up for a third time. This time, Bennett didn’t have any staff to defend himself. With no choice, he circulated all his remaining mana into his hands and braced for another hit.

  As it struck, his arms broke from the force, but he used the momentum to keep his lead. He knew this would be the last time he could block it. The next attack could and would kill him if he didn’t get help.

  Bennett crushed his Apprentice ID as he ran. The moment the ID was destroyed, it signaled that the student was dead, alerting the school to send help.

  He could’ve done this earlier, but amidst the pressure and forced calmness, he had forgotten.

  Back at the academy, the instructor responsible for monitoring student IDs saw the signal of an elite student vanish.

  “What the this is an emergency!”

  He quickly grabbed his phone and called the guards.

  The guards answered.

  “Yes, sir, what is the reason for your call?

  Did any of our students leave?”

  “Yes, sir. Bennett, Rank 1 Apprentice. What’s wrong?”

  “Quick, send out a search. His ID signal has abruptly stopped he’s possibly dead.”

  The guard stood up. “Affirmative. I’ll go find him.”

  He left, heading in the direction Bennett had gone earlier that morning. He remembered Bennett mentioning that something felt off.

  As for Bennett, he stopped running, turning to face the beast. It was too close to outrun now. It could kill him any moment, but it stopped when Bennett did. It seemed amused, as if asking why he had stopped the chase.

  Bennett could barely make out the silhouette of the beast, but he prepared for a final strike.

  The beast roared and dashed once more, its mouth wide open to take a chunk out of Bennett. Its prey had given up.

  But just as the beast arrived, Bennett collapsed. It failed to maul him. It was obvious he was unconscious, and if left alone, he would soon die.

  Taking this opportunity, the beast opened its mouth again, preparing to devour Bennett.